Crave

Country crooner Keith Urban tackles the slalom in EA's Celebrity Sports Showdown.

(Credit: Electronic Arts )

If you've ever dreamed of watching a Mia Hamm/Sugar Ray Leonard beach volleyball smackdown (and who hasn't, really?), Electronic Arts' upcoming Celebrity Sports Showdown (PDF) could bring a new level of fulfillment to your life. The title lets you play as (a sometimes odd-looking version of) select celebrities battling their way through outdoor games including smash badminton, rapid-fire archery, wild-water canoeing, inner-tubing, and hurdle derby.

Fergie jousting with Keith Urban? Reggie Bush locked in an arena dodgeball deathmatch with Kristi Yamaguchi? Don't even get Perez Hilton started on the possibilities here.

The game, which will be the first Wii title to launch under the new EA Sports Freestyle brand, "explores the lighter side of sports and pulls inspiration from the entertainment spectacles that are so prevalent in pop culture today," said Dave McCarthy, the title's executive producer.

Celebrity Sports Showdown ships to retailers this holiday season with a suggested retail price of $39.99. In addition to the aforementioned stars, other celebs who've (presumably) agreed to virtual combat include LeAnn Rimes, Nelly Furtado, and Paul Pierce. Maybe the screenshots in this blog will help open your imagination to the world of possibilities about to be at your fingertips.

Who ever said rocker Avril Lavigne couldn't play a mean game of smash badminton?

(Credit: Electronic Arts)

When Dr. Dre rapped that he would "keep those heads ringin," the Grammy-winning artist perhaps only meant to foreshadow the Friday release of his new headphones, "Beats by Dr. Dre."

"Beats by Dr.Dre" headphones will be sold at Apple and Best Buy for $350.

(Credit: BeatsByDre.com)

While they are marketed with the name of the rapper-turned-producer, the headphones are actually made by Monster Cable, which specializes in audio and video accessories. Jimmy Iovine, chairman of Interscope Geffen A&M Records, also was on the development team.

Monster claims that the Beats headphones are "the most advanced headphone ever built." According to the product Web site, they were designed so that consumers could hear music at the same quality as producers in the studio, specifically clearer music with an emphasis on bass.

"Beats by Dr. Dre" headphones have extra-large speaker drivers and a high-power digital amplifier, isolation technology to lessen outside noise, and a Monster iSoniTalk headphone cable with microphone, so the device can connect to music-enabled phones, according to the Apple Store.

Starting July 25, the headphones will be sold at Apple Stores and Best Buys around the nation and online, as well as BeatsByDre.com. In-store purchasers can also test out the high-end headphones, which retail for $349.95.

(Credit: Crave UK)

Gladiators with oversized forks. Boxers with oversized shorts. Rugby players with frighteningly deformed ears. Throughout history, man has pitted himself against his fellow man and cheered as limbs were ripped from limb and teeth flew like confetti at a wedding. Given our general lack of buffness, however, geeks have never got in on the act. Until now.

Today, with tongue firmly in cheek, metaphors at the ready and whimsy mode set to "on," we're pitching the top celebrities of the technology world against each other. Kevin Rose, founder of digg, takes on Rob Malda, founder of Slashdot. Web entrepreneurs Jason Calacanis and Dave Winer will fight to the blog-loving death. Who will live to tell the tale? Find out here.

(Source: Crave UK)

(Credit: GeekSugar)

Shrinkage is a natural part of gadget evolution: So as phones have gotten smaller over the years, why not headsets? Especially ones with Bluetooth because, if you're not careful, you could end up looking like a cartoon character.

That, by the way, is the last thing we'd expect of Eva Longoria Parker, Brooke Shields, or Fergie, all of whom are reportedly very early adopters of the"Discovery 925" Bluetooth earbuds from Plantronics, which won't even be available to the general public until April. According to GeekSugar, these "feminine earpieces are comfortable, lightweight and much more sleeker than your average Bluetooth headset."

That would explain their colors. The $149 headsets, which are eventually expected to be available in a dozen hues, will come out initially in black, gold, and magenta.

And we close the book on the saga that was the Medison Celebrity laptop.

(Credit: Medison Europe Limited)

You were right. I was wrong.

You--various Crave readers, Dan Ackerman, assorted acquaintances--said I was a fool to think I'd actually get the $150 Swedish laptop I ordered back in July. When the six-week delivery window came and went, I decided to give it one more month before pulling the plug. (While I may be a fool, I would like to point out that I was never out any cash; 2Checkout.com assured me that I wouldn't be charged until it had proof from Medison that my order had shipped.) After waiting another month on the hope that Medison would at least fulfill the first few hundred orders it received (I was told my order was in this group), I checked back with 2Checkout.com today and was told that Medison Celebrity orders were not shipping do to "logistical problems." While offering the possibility that these supposed problems may be solved at some future date, neither of the two support reps I spoke with seemed to hold out much hope that would ever occur. So, order: canceled.

Despite keeping my order open these past 10 weeks, I had my doubts about Medison ever delivering on its promise. How did it expect to make any money off this enterprise? Why so few details about how and when it would ship the laptop? Why couldn't it explain a simple matter such as how much it expected to charge for shipping? As soon as a problem entered the discussion, I felt no need to keep my order open. And I take solace in the fact I wasn't the only foolish hopeful blogger in the family to last this long; ZDNet's Larry Dignan canceled his Medison order on Monday.

I now turn my attention to another cheap but delayed laptop, the Asus Eee PC. As our president wisely said, "Fool me once, shame on--shame on you. Fool me--you can't get fooled again." I trust Asus to prevent me from getting fooled again.

Every story that crosses our desk about ultra-cheap laptops--from the $100 OLPC schoolkid special, to the $150 Medison Celebrity from Sweden, to the $200 Asus Eee (for that price, you only get one letter)--generates a tremendous amount of buzz, not to mention more than its fair share of blog posts.

The delayed Asus Eee

Of course, getting any of these systems actually in our greedy little hands is another matter entirely. The One Laptop Per Child project is still struggling to get (now $200) OLPC systems into the hands of kids, turning to a new plan--instead of getting governments, corporations or charitable groups to fund these laptops, the general public can now buy one for themselves and sponsor one for a child in a developing nation. That program doesn't start until mid-November, so even those willing to pay $400 for the $100 OLPC laptop won't have one anytime soon.

The mysterious $150 Medison Celebrity, from a PC maker in Sweden, has gotten a lot of coverage for something that is essentially vaporware. Matt Elliott placed his order back in July, but so far (as I predicted) neither he, nor any member of the public or press have gotten their systems, despite a series of bizarre statements from the company and various other shadiness.

Is this the mysterious Medison Celebrity?

Our last hope for a low-cost laptop was the Asus Eee, from Taiwan. We've generally liked Asus' systems in the past, but this $200 2-pound, 7-inch, Linux-based laptop is nowhere to be found, outside of a few trade show appearances. The street date has gone from September to early October, and now, the date has been moved back to mid-November (or very late October, if you give Asus the benefit of the doubt), around the same time as the new OLPC two-for-one program starts.

None of this means we'll stop searching for the holy grail of an inexpensive, functional laptop--but like some crypto-mythological creature (such as Bigfoot or the chupacabra), they're always tantalizingly out of reach.

Who knew this guy could dance? Unfortunately, we don't yet have a screenshot from Tuesday night's dancestravaganza.

(Credit: Golden State Warriors blog)

Nobody was expecting billionaire entrepreneur Mark Cuban to be a runaway surprise on the ABC reality show Dancing with the Stars, but he naturally managed to raise a few eyebrows on his Tuesday night dancing debut. For one, the opening credits featured the Dallas Mavericks owner and HDNet guru shouting "I am a lean, mean dancing machine!" And paired with scantily-clad Australian dancer Kym Johnson, the 49-year-old entrepreneur wiggled his hips, snapped his fingers, lip-synched, and (naturally) let his tongue hang out.

Cuban did indeed "churn the butter" as he'd promised his blog readers. He also ended his dance with an odd little hop that led one of the judges to characterize him as a "bouncing bionic billionaire."

He clearly had a lot of fun, and was remarkably good-natured about the whole process despite his reputation for picking fights around the NBA. But it was borderline offensive when Cuban, who is reportedly worth $2.6 billion, showed up in brown coattails covered in faux tatters and danced the foxtrot with Johnson to the tune of hobo anthem "King of the Road."

It's going to sound preachy of me in the midst of an otherwise fluffy blog post, but homelessness and poverty are legitimate problems in the U.S. and it was neither cute nor funny for Cuban to evoke vagrancy in his dance debut. What would happen, for example, if Apple CEO Steve Jobs dressed up as a homeless person for Halloween?

All political correctness aside, Cuban also managed to look adequately ridiculous. As one anonymous observer glued to a TV screen told me, "That jacket is a fashion felony."

Cuban earned a final score of 21 (a seven from each of the three judges), to which he responded with "Blackjack, baby!" Viewers won't know until Wednesday night whether he makes it to the next round. Whether or not more dancing from Cuban will be amusing or simply irritating remains, well, up in the air.

(Credit: Medison Europe Limited)

Sadly, it looks like I'm going to have to call shenanigans on the $150 Swedish laptop. When I placed my order for the Medison Celebrity laptop on July 25, the Medison Web site estimated the Linux-based laptop would ship within four to six weeks. Well, today marks six weeks, so unless I see the UPS man within the next hour or so, Medison will have failed to honor its commitment to ship me a laptop in the stated time frame. The company hasn't even bothered to inform me how much it plans to charge for shipping the laptop, let alone provide an update on when I might expect to receive it.

The laptop is sold through Columbus, Ohio-based reseller 2Checkout.com, which has been thoughtfully answering questions from understandably concerned customers who have a Medison laptop on order. A 2Checkout.com rep named Kristen has been active on a forum thread and stated in a recent post, "All customers who pre-ordered will have shipping costs identified via re-invoice and be asked to re-authorize the order." I haven't received an e-mail from 2Checkout.com since the initial confirmation of my order on July 25.

I spoke with a 2Checkout.com support person this afternoon, and she was able to tell me that my order was among the first couple hundred, which means I should be among the first to receive the laptop if and when Medison actually starts shipping the thing. (She did say Medison started shipping the laptop in Sweden--a small consolation to this U.S. laptop user.) Though helpful and knowledgeable about the situation--I wasn't the first person to call customer support about Medison--she seemed as perplexed as I did about the lack of detail Medison has provided since it announced the availability of the Celebrity laptop. Even a simple item like shipping--how much I'll be asked to pay or how the charge will be handled--has yet to be explained. I certainly want to avoid dealing directly with Medison if it involves giving the company my credit card number.

I'm going to keep my order open with the hopes that a $150 laptop shipped late is better than a $150 laptop shipped never. My credit card has not been charged, and I trust 2Checkout.com to not bill me until it has received proof--a tracking number--from Medison that my Celebrity laptop is in route. More as I know it, but as it stands now, I'm far from impressed on how Medison is doing business. If it weren't for 2Checkout.com staying on top of the situation, I would have canceled my order by now.

How about the rest of you with a Medison Celebrity laptop on order? Have you been given any indication you'll be receiving the system? Have you given up and canceled your order? Know anyone in Sweden who can prove the laptop has really started shipping?

It seems the older you get, the more lackluster the birthday celebrations become. And, while there's no need for birthday hats and balloons to fete the event, it seems that at the very least an indulgent cake is in order. The folks over at Gifts & More, however, would argue a musical cake server that plays the Happy Birthday song is in order too.

Musical Cake Server

(Credit: Gifts & More)

Made to mimic antique milk glass, this mint-colored plastic is attractive enough to pull out whenever cake slicing is called for. (So long as you don't mind it playing Happy Birthday on your wedding anniversary.)

Though it may seem that there is only enough room in the world for one of these, it turns out one of the competing models plays multiple songs. But, it's out of stock , so we can't report back on it. (And it's unclear if it's out of stock due to its overwhelming popularity or its lack thereof.) Either way you slice it, these are more utilitarian that a plain old musical card and they'll definitely get people talking (or singing).